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WSJ Cafe: The Story Behind 'The Fault in Our Stars'

6/5/2014 5:54AM

Actor Ansel Elgort and writer John Green tell WSJ’s Tanya Rivero what went into bringing the beloved novel to the big screen, reveal the real-life inspiration for Hazel and Augustus, and show how they worked together to bring Augustus to life. Photo: Associated Press.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

... guzzlers ... maybe you'd like shares ... the ... moving ... this in ... his ... life ... the ... well what well the WSJ Cafe I'm Tanya Rivero ... but here today with the writer John Green author of The fault in Our Stars is ... an actor and fall out boy who is co starring in the film adoption ... of the novel welcome to both of you think too much for being here thank you ... I was start with you your ... novel is so loved by so many readers that deals with a very touching love story between two young cancer patients when you at all hesitant about turning it into town ... D I was very hesitant to mean a thing Cullen would struggles not to tell sentimental stories particularly when ... I'm ... it's a serious for challenging ... circumstance um they often ... fall into the trap of sentiment to see stories ... of botched ... of decreases median and the studio promised that they wouldn't do that and think ... it's fair you are pleased with the end result on through growth or wouldn't be here ... you know I am I'm so lucky I ... am so happy I love ... love them soo grateful to do it because you think it's the story and yet you have no interest in writing the screenplay crackdown on the Tampa screenwriter ... a month or do you agree writing and cloths um ... as critics pointed out um ... but ... the boys are so structural and novels from the Roosters and character driven in and around the rambling around it ... he discusses the ... screen is on and so ... I ... was very very lucky ... with reduced it to the best screenwriters working right now on we able to lend structure to the store ... well revenue is so you don't have much interest in the way people actually speak ... you have more interest than the actual emotion that they are ... put trade yet I'm Maurice in the wee wee ... wee wee wee sound to each other when we have a conversation and we we actually speak because actual sentences in him and I love that they're rarely home ... since that call it they're almost never ... on and they don't generally like what I'm saying right now for instance would not translate ... to pay up because that whole sentence was completely anti ... any sense that you know what I'm saying ... it sounds good to ... read so that's that that's the magic of a tool of communication between patients moved the other thing is that you know in in these star crossed ... lover epics home really the whole market that John has heightened language and I've always loved that kind of love from ... the ... Romeo and Juliet ... for consumers ... to ... do with the language can ... raise story ... when taking your language of the screen and NAMA was an easy day here ... so ... the pattern are Capri a way to process and you get a script ... how do you work on it and when you create a character ... like the past if the old dishes that is it is really creamy character ... on ... its taken costs yourself that you see in the character and then ... bring on on the plus yourself that are in and putting them away ... and then I ever see us use these to fill in blanks so ... Craig us is that the law firm and especially as the US to talk about the tone in the way he speaks ... the summing that ... was very devil and I wasn't necessarily finding out ... how would he say these lines because it is something in that way it's a it's a trap as a national and think that way ... it's more ... why would you say these things and walk on a person would say this ... and aam ... eh she wasn't until I met John understood ok this is a coming guys speaking Fenwick is John says stuff like gossip and say he's no uses big words in ... this is sort of fantastical sentences ... more can you cut the actor who ... had incomes ... indirectly and I headed to the game is the isthe IV insult to the Delta's understand on all songs that ... hinders him being and being a positive like he was a very positive as something I was there encouraging to us ... on as always a good thing was positive is your duty to Joe ... Dodona for job but wouldn't it ... I wouldn't be anyone left ... open but what if ... you know that I wasn't that thrilled that I would have been on sale ... the number had set aside to ... love the way ... across the province ... when you're young and he's the man never had completely ... um ... and well ... I feel that I should answer the question for the ... two women jogging in take this one I have on Monday I'm going to content and high school ... no ... um ... no no I hadn't I was deeply and intensely in love with a woman in college for many years and one relationship went on for now I have this amazing man I can throw on with my life on the way that we fell in love ... home was a great inspiration for me in writing the story but also on ... the way that the real love works the way they can sustain you believe that it can hold you well it's not all about the romance it's really about the ... new intimacy and a neutral support ... I wanted his link us to get their didn't want them to ... and want them to be ... you know just this that this idealized image we have heat romance was so intense will be intensities awesome and everything but ... what really makes um ... makes this was special whether the romantic or not ... is the connection and this ... all is based somewhat on the girl you do and I can't ... oh I was I became friends I to meet her in the hospital and I met her on Thurs and communities that surround them for years and that my brother to be on my friend Esther aam died of cancer in two thousand and two sixteen was a huge inspiration for this recession important part of ... my life ... um ... Hutchison inspiration from all over the inspiration for the can in the end of it all the work I'd I'd do ... so you are very close friends ... we became friends during close friends and I certainly can't about her lot ... to think that you can view ... on but yet we were to be ... we've we've recently and ... was there a particular inspiration for the stats ... it's always says to myself which are ... I like this is the sort of like to John wishes he was ... the a ... no Yoree and soon ... a ... no mom ... I do think alot about I I worked in a room to his house for many years ago ... the young man in right ... now what about ... the big seat part of this the cancer at did you ever known anyone personally struggle with cancer ... then if it will have and that's that's why this recession a lot of people ... in a lot like cancer such a big thing in the world and ... the effects on bone effects ... Sony family is then ... taken away from us ... very quickly ... or slowly and then it's ... often painful but ... you know it's ... like ... what the story says is that ... just because someone dies the cancer doesn't mean that they're not important ... for me ... and I think that's a really important message and it's often ... not the main message often ... as John says a lot ... especially in movies when people die of sickness ... when they're young or old ... it's ... to teach the main characters who are healthy lesson ... and that's really stupid ... because you know whether night you die young or old ever one lives a life and ... you know another that if anyone anything yet yet for your of your your life as it has meaning the ... US doesn't have meaning because ... of the people are worried ... about the messages or whatever us as many visitors meaning in and ... um ... the tried and tried to prevent the story I think I think insulin into the deep end and that will get mixed order jumping to weigh on with the care ... with all the director of elite is ... one Amazon said promise the entire shoot so I'd son Josh everyday and ... I watched everything to chime in on them but no I didn't I didn't see Lanka to get into these and want to pass on to say ... I just wanted to enjoy the process of making them to support the people who are making it ... um and um you know when I have a little bit of what if I had anything ... I thought might be useful I would say that I was very rare they were just doing a good job son in this way ... what about your CoStar Staley Leslie ... you to work together before divergence in different roles to play her brother and that that make it hard hurry easier ... to come into this role as her love interest ... no I AWD is here aam ... especially in for for both of us ... I'd I'd ... this is I think my third movie out of high school ... and Diane has fallen for me to school and you work with the same forty kids for four years ... in yen again you know she's good people missiles the people strip was that ... all the stuff and ... you get a sense of ensemble and a couple that went to work with ... analysts that it ... is like sorta the same thing wish alien readjust the members and together ... we will come with each other we had the sense of ensemble were just really good friends ... I'm so you store for my friends it is kind of it was nice ... of ... what we could really is a classic other um go at each other ... have something you know we had ... some fights and we had some new nice dinner isn't that's it's really important to have the chemistry absolutely well ... rehearsal process play with her ... to get together ... on her own for ... now the director not wanted to live ... she leaned isn't really believe universal space ... so I'd I'd do because I'm so on for stage but it since I was on the service on on our experience dinosaur like showing them that she's doing so ... I sorta fell to the end of the belted out ... she was like that with out of one rehearsal just let it happen on the day and and that once we you know she does her sourcing a certain character ... to me like I really want and sending us this but then ... on the day you really do show up the Mike ... let it happen right and then a super panicking great but yet happy that the classes than just memorizing lines you work with Sunline and MONEYLINE that's even after this the next lake ... I wouldn't be tied ... to spend a lot of that was not only the right ... thing A Marsalis do you really just get used to ignite an aggressive so quickly ... what if everything from a few times is worth it to become like ... second nature ... job cm ... and how was it was the director ... some directors say it was a period that ... caught up ... in PA is ... winning this didn't give you ... one of the way we also really respected just because the dialogue was a lot of it was taken right from the book I ... so we didn't want a butcher that would imagine if I said you know apparently the world's not a wish granting place ... like that but if I wouldn't be those lines are so important can be commences up ... I was stuffed with you would like us to make just yet the dollar that you had to ... dodge the fluid announced ... aam and there's a whole the whole ... scene at in and ensure that a worse than other blog Olivier is inevitable and ... eventually will be returned the Sunnah saying right now because it's it's not read the deaths of at the time I had ... had to memorize and I had massive Shilon Josh can come soon enough ... on the sofa speech this is like were far from where four for broke ... and it's perfect in your same way as I'm so so I wanted to ski mask and a star ... I'd take it ... I was um ... will then if I if you me like or it would mess of words but then there was like literally maybe ... played twenty weren't really close to him do you think that such important moment in the film ... and ... then they got together and I she didn't like the taste is chosen as the gosh I dunno I feel the guys I don't think a genuine look nice you really think he said I think it's the best seen the movie I think are so real ... to just please look Etienne and then the file for the movie awash in is a different taken as it's better to ensure things that you convince the director ... yes actually I think to be honest the thing is when the earlier take some action stamina lines ... but the summing about ... stumbling on the line which is more enduring than like having a school speech at the moment word for Gus is ... eases and I love this A witty said of this but it's not Ricketson and ... trail ... mix or eleventh ... grade he says he tells her that he is in love with her ... and it's like a really good so it can be a vulnerable moment for young person to tells a girl who has also been a little bit defensive Allison don't love me and this one dear friend and he ... says I don't care I love you ... and instead of being super confident is a cough it's the same time when he sort of mumbled Lehi sort of a starters on a wordy messes up an answer ... the Datsun during its showing that yes he is he does have weakness and he isn't wholly shore ... he does feel this way and it's much more enduring than just being there this time of the news that ... you know ... it ... I imagine that's probably what asking woman to marry or when you cut it short you can say as the anti least I ... got the soup dinner ... I did she designed the ring in everything ... I do ... no actually confronted with the ring and I know this ... we'll get out and the moment and all of those moments right here ... and so are you working on anything that we can talk about on ... the ball a mostly working on ... all of online video stuff that the moment home ... of the show we DDS and into my mind with ... no sign of a show I'd you know things where I'd ... I'd produce issue of when he gets them away from Scooby on Assignment were very excited about working on a crash course in some ... other education initiatives ... um I am starting to writing a novel but ... I think with all the stuff ... that you said before they have no interest ... in reading ... for an adult audience even though the fault in Our Stars clearly has ... an Intel an adoring ... audience yes have you change your mind about the snow is still a great inline novels but I'm very grateful that um these days most people reading in adults and I think it's I think it's great ... um I like ... having a dog readers but um I like writing and publishing ... for teenagers and I like writing about ... adolescence or if you can do and why is that ... well didn't do in so many important things to the first time in this and that the heightened ... reality to it is an intensity to it that you don't get ... home in a deal could not in the same way an adult it is much better as anyone you know it's ... hard ... to have much more was so um but ... I ... know when you fall in love for the first time in years grappling with grief for the first time you're asking big questions about meaning in suffering for the first time ... on ... that's a really important part of your life ... and you're asking this question is directly without irony without fear and um I do like approaching this question that way I also like writing for people who are approaching this question is that way it's ... us were a lot of the Julian in rioting in and talking about his is with me so ... um I know I wouldn't leave ... you read any of concrete but before you kept ... me I ... know ... you read Polar stars ... IRA fallen stars as another night another one saw him enough ... no I hear the other ones are very had to be honest ... I think before I read fallen stars ... Henretta book in like two or three years and since fallen so this'll have the book on ... cruel and terrible on Etsy now that's what you have a feeling together ... counsel Romeo read read something you ... can read GSP to legislate on certain us ... the the last book I read from the grid to wrap something ... that will see our present ... I ... asking a taxi ... what we both like in baseball ... you will he was even imagine and so was the huge here I ... I just think ... today I had friends struggled daily like I could've been a big narrative her wanted to from school but at the feeder schools I was like ... the coolest kid because I was the musical ... now ... that doesn't hairspray dancing on stage in this oversee that was the cool kid for your triple threat ... though he is the total to go on ... here's the part that that that that you know um ... I was ... you know I was a bit Mary um but I also was looking into ... it to a high school in nerdiness has been in and ... small boarding school mountain called Union Springs ... is really an extraordinary place ... the the ... allowed for people um few gauge with the world ... brilliantly lit wonderful teachers and families was readers but also an ... awesome really supportive and um I think that's ... a lot of the reason why ... I was ... fortunate enough to view the I'm going to college and then ... find a ... job in and do ok from the ... city's high school ... I did yes um I say writing seriously in high school among my employer my friends Daniel ... Cohen is a valid a ... very well respected homeless home ... he pushed me ... along with another classmate some of those are really great environment for REITs and ... I think that some of ... its once said ... I know you're smart but I've been smart a lot longer yet clear to include inundated ... with the you may be smaller but it's more along the inside ... very small I liked it so much that I know my email include an African and still does learn from you ... he was like the honesty and ... I think a stool ... because like I've been through it ... all and three ... thanks to both of you for being with us today we can lead ... to ... a connecting congratulations thank you so much ... inky so much ...